Blogs from Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China, Asia - page 13

…..Saturday evening, 12th of September. The two Aussies are invited to dinner with our Canadian administrator, who offers to cook. She's lived here several years but doesn't like Chinese food much. She's also fishing for information as she is planning a holiday in Australia in October with a friend who lives there. My stomach is not 100% but I don't take too much notice. I don't feel any better later so sleep from 9pm until 6.30am Sunday. I get up for a (slow) walk but go back to sleep for another 3 hours! Unheard of! Light food only. My planned trip to take night photos in Yangzhou cancelled. …..by Sunday afternoon I am ready for a walk to the park across the New Bridge with Peter - he needs to get out & stop worrying about ... read more

…..not being good at remembering names is a poor qualification for someone who will have 5 classes of 30+ kids to teach next week. I am struggling to remember the names of my colleagues, the “International teachers” as we are known. I'll be getting photos in due course but for now there's Peter, (Australia), Joel & Chelbee, an African-American couple from Virginia, USA, Erin, from Syracuse, New York, Kyle, (Canada), Matt, Nelson, Patrick & Corey, (USA) also another couple, Kelly & Elizabeth from Montana. Alex is from Manchester, UK, though I don't think you'd pick it from his accent. Laura's also from the Old Dart. There are a few others too. Lauren, (Canada), Gyu & Halim, a couple from Indonesia, then, in administration, Cathy from Winnipeg, Canada, plus local ladies, Angel & Rainy (not their original ... read more

Into the City we venture. It’s official. Elizabeth and I have freshly been declared by the Chinese Government as worthy participant of their 1 billion-member team. Praise the lord and rejoice. After a full week of holding a thermometer in our armpits, twice daily, and a trip to the International Travel Health Bureau of the People’s Republic of China we passed the test. The trip to the hospital was interesting, er, mind boggling. We were prodded, poked, x-rayed, ultra-sounded, weighed, checked for vision, and of course, asked to pee in a cup. The funny thing was that the restrooms were a long hallway away from the lab, and when given a shallow, lid-less, plastic cup in which to produce a small sample of urine, the trek proved to be not just a “from the toilet to ... read more

…..I arrive in Sydney after an uneventful flight from Adelaide sandwiched between a possible ex-army colonel & a Kyle Sandilands lookalike who wears headphones for the whole trip..... …..into the International Departure Lounge, a sea of people rummaging frantically through bags, pockets, purses, etc to unearth the nail-clippers or miniscule quantities of any liquid that might lead to a mid-air disaster..... …..an hour or more waiting for the flight, trying to find creative ways to take pictures using all those reflections in the glass that are unavoidable at airports. A beaut, mild, sunny Sydney day..... .....Gate 25 opens, all aboard. Aisle seat, I can just see blue sky through the window beyond the wing. Looks like a nice day to be sitting ON the wing..... …..finally make conversation with the young (30s..!) Chinese man next to ... read more

Zu Besuch bei Bills (chinesisch: Bian - er wird uns noch in Deutschland begegnen) Eltern, die mit der Großmutter zusammen leben. Was man nicht alles beachten muss, wenn man bei Chinesen zu Hause eingeladen ist. Sie waren aber sehr locker und Bills Vater begeistert von unsere Art zu essen, ohne dabei ein Geräusch von uns zu geben. An der Großmutter jedenfalls ist eine Köchin verloren gegangen. Der Plan, am gleichen Tag nach Nanjing zurück zu fahren, ging leider nicht ganz auf. Feiertag in China heißt volle Züge. Wir haben dann eben in einem der Hotels der Mutter geschlafen (Betonung: einem) und sind am nächsten morgen zurück.... read more